This will be my second mother’s day as a mother, which is really inconceivable.Â This past year has been full of fear and frustration combined withÂ infiniteÂ joy and love. But most of all, this year was full of wonderful gifts such as, first words (Mommy included), baby steps and loads of hugs and kisses. Today something really special happened and IÂ want to share it with you. Eli who is 1.2 years old, went to my desk, reached out for my sketch book and a pen. He was trying to draw, but nothing came out since the pen still had the lid onÂ (Surly he knows that mother’s day isÂ comingÂ up).Â IÂ instinctively took out some crayons from theÂ drawer and gave them to him. He made his first artwork and I was there to record the moment on filmÂ (I was so amazed by this beautiful moment that I forgot that I left the water in the tub running).Â I thought that it was such a shame that his father wasn’t there to see it and made up my mind to give him the drawing later today. After I bathed, dressed, fed and putÂ EliÂ to bed, I took anÂ envelope and used a “WinnieÂ the pooh and piglet” puncher to make it pretty. If you look at the picture below you will see why I thought that this image is suitable.

Now I’m waiting till he comes home so I can give it to him.Â

What about Mother’s day you ask? Well, if you would scroll down a little you will find an article I wrote a few weeks ago aboutÂ Giving time.

If you are looking for the perfect mother’s day gift, you will find it there.

For me, this beautiful moment with my son was better than any gift in the world… and what better way toÂ celebrateÂ such a gift, than to share it?

This post is unique.Â usuallyÂ I write posts that would relate to most people, however this one is dedicated to all Jane Austen fans.

My family is obsessed with Pride and Prejudice, the book and the BBC production. This includes quoting, playing the music from the series on the piano and getting excited over anything that has to do withÂ Jane. My dear cousin, who works at a book store, found this amazing Pride and Prejudice counting book for Eli.

During our time in Michigan we had so much fun reading it since we were all adding funnyÂ quotesÂ from the series/book :

For instance for number four- FourÂ marriageÂ proposals, we imitated Mrs Bennet:

“Oh! Mr. Bennet, you are wanted immediately; we are all in an uproar. You must come and make Lizzy marry Mr. Collins, for she vows she will not have him, and if you do not make haste he will change his mind and not haveÂ her.”

Mr. Bennet raised his eyes from his book as she entered, and fixed them on her face with a calm unconcern which was not in the least altered by her communication.

“I have not the pleasure of understanding you,” said he, when she had finished her speech. “Of what are you talking?”

“Of Mr. Collins and Lizzy. Lizzy declares she will not have Mr. Collins, and Mr. Collins begins to say that he will not have Lizzy.”

“And what am I to do on the occasion?â€”It seems an hopeless business.”

“We dine at Rosings twice every week, and are never allowed to walk home. Her ladyship’s carriage is regularly ordered for us. IÂ shouldÂ say, one of her ladyship’s carriages, for she has several.”

If you are laughing out loud, congratulations, you are aÂ JaneÂ AustenÂ freak and probably related to me (Hi dad!). If not, you are welcome to watch the wonderful six hours of the BBC series and join the club.

The counting book is wonderful, it is funny and well illustrated. I wish that numbers- six (Horses), Seven (Men in uniform) and eight (Musicians), were different and less general. Number ten blew me away… I don’t want to spoil for those of you who love Jane Austen and would like toÂ purchaseÂ the book, so I won’t say another word…

If you are not a member of the Austen club, the author Jennifer Adams, has other whimsical coloring and counting books. A great way to introduce a little baby to the classics.

I know that I’ve been writing a lot about familyÂ affairs lately, but I did become a mother only four months ago, and it was Mother’s and Father’s Day…. So I guess I needed to get it out of my system. In any case, allow me to share with you one more family related post (though I donâ€™t promise it would be the last).

Let’s discuss babies. I love them, but when I have to get a gift for the new family, I often getÂ frustrated. I never know what to buyâ€¦ (Me! Can you believe?). I don’t like to get baby cloths since they grow right out of them; I received about ten teddy bears and five blankets when my son was born, so I stay away from those. And I hate to admit it but since I got a lot of stuff from my sister who had twins, I had to exchange most of the gifts I received.Â Another matter is that I sometimes feel the need to perk mommy, daddy and the siblings, and then I have to start looking for gifts at several placesâ€¦Not idealâ€¦

This is why, when I heard about Babatude boutique, I was happy to see that there is something for every member of the family. But thatâ€™s not all; the boutique offers unique, eco-friendly, handmade and personalized products by designers from around the world. They offer customized gifts, free world-wide shipping (love that!) and free gift wraps. Â Some of the designers even pledge to charity, which gives you the chance to give twice, once for your recipient and back to the community.

Here are my personal favorites:

Like father like son: oak-tree and acorn tshirt set, a great way to give a gift for both daddy and baby.

A personalizedÂ hand stamp is a gift that the family will enjoy for years to come… When the baby grows old, s/he will have a wonderful keepsake (I think it’s my favorite of the bunch).

Being a big brother is a huge deal… A superman top will help himÂ live up to his new title.

And for the big sister… I just think any girl would love these strawberry ballerina pumps… I wish I had a pair….

If you don’t want to focus on one member of the family, a great option is buying a decor item for the nursery, then everyone can enjoy the gift:

The wildlife mobile is wonderful if you don’t know the nursery colors since it’s plain wooden and therefore will work with any shade.

The felt globe is more than just wall decor, it is actually a great game for any age… So it’s great for older brothers or sister as well…

“HowÂ tall am I” height chart is another wonderful choice,Â especiallyÂ if you are feelingÂ philanthropic. This designerÂ provides educational materials and resources to South African children in need. It’s so nice to know that you are giving to more than one person.

These are my choices but be sure to pay them a visit. Once you do, you will realize how difficult it was to choose from their wonderful products. Take your time and browse, I would love to hear your personal favorites.

Charts, stickers and graphics oh my! What a great way to refresh the traditional scrapbook.Â Bordered by growth rulers to track your babyâ€™s height and weight are colorful graphics and charts for you to color, write in or apply stickers to. Ranging from place of birth, motor skills, hairstyles, first Halloween costume, first words and much more.

This 20×30â€ print is toxic free, includes 100 stickers and in my opinion a great way to decorate theÂ nursery. The best thing is that your child will have a cool art print to hang inÂ theirÂ room even as they grow older, thanks to the cool design… Perfect right? Not quite… Since the poster is too expensive to manufacture, the good people at StrangeBirtyStudios need some support… So I thought I’d help with this post… Want to help? Follow the Kickstarter link and support them too.

I am determined to succeed in combining motherhood with blogging.Â Therefore, I am forcing myself to spare a few minutes while my young one sleeps, so I can keep up with my blogging duties. Luckily, I saw and â€œstarredâ€ in my reader this beautiful and well executed gift idea by Michelle from Wood and Fabric. So not only do I get to share a wonderful idea with you, but it relates to my new role as a mother, allowing me to share my thoughts in the most authentic manner.

As a fresh mom, I am still getting used to all the new roles that come with motherhood, therefore, I don’t really have the time to document my baby’s “first steps” in this world as I wish I could have. I believe that if I had a scrapbook like this one, such that has all the info in it, that I just have to fill in, I would be able to document all the new changes my little one is going through. Regardless,Â I think that Michelle did such an admirableÂ craftsmanship, paying attention to each and every detail. The cute shoes with cards forÂ greetings, the cute pockets with notes and all the cute little ornaments she added.

Exactly a week ago on the 26 ofÂ February, we welcomed ourÂ eldestÂ son into this world.Â The pregnancy period went very smoothly and I generally felt good and remained very active. Last tuesday I was feeling week and went to the hospital. After some checkups I wasÂ hospitalized for surveillance andÂ was sure that I would be released byÂ Thursday. Instead I stayed at the hospital until the labor took place onÂ Sunday.Â Naturally, I was veryÂ nervous about giving birth since I didn’t quite know what to expect… Although, I must say thatÂ thanksÂ to theÂ epidural, the labor wasÂ difficultÂ but not unbearable,Â definitely notÂ something I wish to do every day.

Now that we are comfortably home and feeling well, I found a few moments to write this post, just to let you know that I mightÂ postpone blogging for a while… I am getting used to being a mom and although I hope to get back to blogging soon, I’m not sure how this new situation will effect my blogging, however, I am sure that once I get the hang of things, I would be back on track.

Meanwhile, we gave the world and ourselves thisÂ preciousÂ gift, one that comes with a strict no returns policy!

I started thinking about baby gifts, since one of my friends gave birth a few weeks ago. She is a funny,Â mischievous person with a vivid personality and I wanted to make aÂ humerusÂ gift for her, since I know she willÂ appreciateÂ a good laugh. I thought that what mothers really need is some peace and quite. Since my friend has a great sense ofÂ humorÂ I decided to make a volume buttonÂ baby romper for her.

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This is a simple FeltÂ embroideryÂ button you can do by yourself.Â I used the blanket stitchÂ for the volume notches and a simple running stitch for the lettering and numbering. I then glued it to the baby romper. Since I haven’t done any embroidery in a while… I made some rookie mistakes such as sewing the pattern after sewing the two felt circles with the blanket stitch… This left quite a mess at the back, luckily I’ve glued it to the romper so you can’t see the messy part.

WhileÂ thisÂ gift will beÂ appreciatedÂ by those with a good sense of humor, some mothers won’t be so happy toÂ receiveÂ it…Â RememberÂ know yourÂ receiverÂ and give with care.